Apple’s Phil Schiller rejects cheap iPhone rumours

Apple Senior Vice President Phil Schiller has spoken out against the current rumours concerning a possible cheaper iPhone.

Earlier in the week the Wall Street Journal reported that a low-cost iPhone was in the works, and would be launched some time in 2013.

In a recent official interview with China’s Shanghai Evening News, however, Phil Schiller rejected the report. “Despite the popularity of cheap smartphones,” he said, “this will never be the future of Apple’s products.”

It seems that Apple is sticking to its premium product strategy. “Every product that Apple creates, we consider using only the best technology available,” Schiller claimed.

Some may feel that a cheaper iPhone is inevitable in light of the prevalence of cheaper Android devices. Schiller, however, points out that it’s not all about market share. “Although Apple’s market share of smartphones is just about 20 per cent,” he said, “we own 75 per cent of the profit.”

Whilst this might seem to quash the rumours emanating from some major news sources, it’s worth considering Schiller’s words a little more closely. He doesn’t, for example, define what he means by “cheap smartphones.”

Any iPhone Apple produces will be a premium product. But of course, some phones can be consider as more premium than others. Just as the company managed to produce a cheaper iPad in the shape of the iPad mini without compromising on its premium philosophy, so it could conceivably find a way to produce a cheaper iPhone with a different marketing angle.

What do you think? Does this put to bed suggestions of a cheaper iPhone, or was Schiller choosing his words a little too carefully? Let us know via the Trusted Reviews Twitter and Facebook feeds, or through the comments box below.